Commission welcomes Police 'Roastbusters' apology as first step

Commission welcomes Police 'Roastbusters' apology as first step

March 20, 2015

The Human Rights Commission has welcomed today’s Police apology and acknowledgement that officers let down victims and their families by failing to properly investigate the so called 'Roastbusters'.

“The Police apology is just the beginning, we have a lot of work to do. There are important lessons that the Police must take on board. They missed the opportunity to connect the dots, work collaboratively with other departments, confront the behaviour and prevent further harm to young women," said Human Rights Commissioner with responsibility for women's human rights, Dr Jackie Blue.

“Many sexual abuse victims have also been failed by the current judicial system. I support calls by Justice Minister Amy Adams for the Law Commission to re-start and prioritise this piece of work.”

“The statistics are appalling only 10 in 100 sexual assaults are reported to Police and only 3 of them make it to court with only 1 resulting in a conviction. In other words only 1% of reported sexual assaults in our country result in a conviction.” Dr Blue added.

This case is a prime example of where despite the public outrage, a prosecution did not result. The real concern is that with the current adversarial system victims are being re-victimised said the Commissioner.

“Violence is a huge human rights issue facing New Zealanders and it’s up to all of us to shut it down. I would like to thank those brave young women who complained to Police and who have been victimised many times over since then.”